The Formula One rebellion

Eight of the 10 teams which make up Formula One have defected saying they'll set up a rival championship. Australian Grand Prix race organisers are confident a world class racing circuit will still go ahead in Melbourne next year.

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MARK COLVIN: The 59-year legacy of World Formula 1 racing hangs in the balance after eight major teams agreed to set up a rival championship.

The announcement came after a meeting of the rebel teams which make up the Formula 1 Teams' Association .

They include Ferrari, McLaren, Renault and BMW.

Di Bain reports.

(sound of speeding car)

DI BAIN: A couple of days ago Formula 1 driver Felipe Massa was taking his Ferrari around the track in Italy preparing for Sunday's British Grand Prix.

Weighing on his mind was the politics surrounding Formula 1's future.

FELIPE MASSA: I hope things will be okay because I think the fans and the drivers and the teams we don't need that. So we need the sport to become the most important level in the motor sport and that's what we want.

DI BAIN: Felipe Massa says he'll always be a Ferrari driver but it's now emerged that's unlikely to happen under the banner of Formula 1.

Eight of the 10 teams which make up the Formula 1 championship run by billionaire sports entrepreneur Bernie Ecclestone have pulled out.

That leaves just two teams with Formula 1; Force India and Williams.

Motor sport commentator Will Hagon says the dispute is about money.

WILL HAGON: Formula 1 probably, at least 80 per cent of the money spent by the teams is not seen in any way by the spectators. There's no spectator benefit in the way the cars perform the way they appear, what the spectator sees when they go to the racetrack.

It's all hidden away by boffins in wind tunnels doing eternal testing by out-of-season testing and all sorts of things - they spend phenomenal amounts of money.

DI BAIN: The teams say they'll set up a new event with the Formula 1 Teams association.

That's bad news for Melbourne. It's signed up for a Grand Prix race next year but the crowd pleasers, Ferrari, McLaren or Brawn GP might not show up.

The race organiser Drew Ward says he's unconcerned.

DREW WARD: This is the latest round of a long series of discussions that have been going on. The matter is not resolved, it's not final, we expect that there to be plenty more to be played out on this matter and we have every faith that Formula 1 management will reach a satisfactory resolution.

The important thing from our point of view, from Melbourne's point of view is that the Australian Grand Prix will happen next year in March as expected and it'll be the great show it always is.

DI BAIN: Commentator Will Hagon says the racing teams are fiercely competitive and it's unlikely they'll be able to cooperate enough to develop a new championship.

WILL HAGON: No I don't and as I say, I think that lot has a real problem because it is the competitors running the race.

DI BAIN: At the end of the day, what does this all mean for the fans?

WILL HAGON: Well I hope it means purer motor racing. Where we get more overtaking, where we have less reliance on aerodynamic down force and most importantly, drop all that money, just spend the money on the drivers, the car that you put on the racetrack and the two hours of racing that you do.